Sheriff says he asked for state grand jury

ANDERSON - The South Carolina's Attorney General's Office has asked to have a grand jury look into the administration of former Anderson County administrator Joey Preston.

The request appears to be in the hands of Fifth Circuit Judge G. Thomas Cooper of Columbia, who will decide if a state grand jury will hear the matter.

Anderson County Sheriff John Skipper said Tuesday he met with officials from the Attorney General's Office in early December to go over the process for a state grand jury and with SLED Director Reggie Lloyd in late December or early January.

"(Lloyd) said he felt, with the information we had, we could put together a case with the potential for a state grand jury," Skipper said. "From there that process began with him. We (Skipper and his investigators) laid out the basic facts, the attorney general signs off on them, and the director of SLED signs off on them. As I understand it, it is anticipated that the judge will sign off on it tomorrow."

Mark Plowden, spokesman for Attorney General Henry McMaster's office, said the attorney general and the director of the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division both need to sign off on a petition to request the state grand jury before the judge decides whether the matter goes forward.

Plowden said McMaster signed off on the request last week and to the best of his knowledge Lloyd had also signed off on it.

"If you read in the law, there is a provision that in order for the state grand jury to be utilized, the circumstances around criminal allegations must be such that they may not be investigated adequately using normal police procedures," Plowden said. "The state grand jury has subpoena power over witnesses and evidence. A county grand jury, that you see used most often, does not have subpoena power and can only determine whether or not probable cause exists to issue an indictment.

"It's a dramatic difference. Because you are using these extra investigative powers, a lot more steps are required."

Skipper said his investigators, who concentrate on white-collar crime, would be sworn in and testify to a grand jury, if the judge goes forward with the proceedings.

He said his understanding is that if a case is sent to the grand jury the matter could begin this month.

If a grand jury is approved by the judge, jurors would begin hearing the case. The state grand jurors, who were appointed in June, serve two-year terms. Reports to the jury could go on for months, even years, according to Plowden, who said there was no way to tell how long any proceeding could last.

Chrissy Adams, 10th Circuit solicitor, said she first found out about the petition late Monday afternoon. She sent out a press statement, the first public indication of a possible state-level process, around midnight Monday.

"The Attorney General's Office has now been asked to look into the Preston investigation and convene a statewide grand jury which possesses greater investigative powers than possible under a local Anderson County grand jury," the solicitor's statement said.

"Solicitor Adams had no prior knowledge to the existence of any investigation by anyone at all (on the state level) until Monday afternoon," Plowden said.

Plowden and Adams both said Adams was called sometime after 4 p.m. Monday.

The Anderson County Council began an investigation into Preston and his administration in January 2009. Adams and Anderson County Sheriff John Skipper were brought into the investigation in late July.

Adams said Tuesday that she had not been provided any information about Preston by Skipper, sheriff's investigators or private investigators hired by the council.

Adams shared e-mails she exchanged with all of the investigators in which she asked on at least four occasions for a written report of potential criminal offenses, but she said she has still not been provided any information.

"I've gotten nothing, zilch," Adams said.

She said that the state-level process is the best way to go forward.

"I'm not a part of it anymore; a grand jury is the best course now," Adams said. "I do not know if a crime was committed or not, but it would be the same decision no matter who looks at it."

Preston said in a statement Tuesday that political pressure has resulted in the handing of the case over to the Attorney General's Office.

"I remain confident that, like Solicitor Adams, Attorney General McMaster will find no evidence that any wrongdoing occurred," Preston said.

Adams, however, said she has not reached any conclusions because she has not been provided any information.

Grant Burns, an attorney for the county council's investigation, said the council's investigation was ongoing and he could not comment.